Oregon High School Golf

ALOHA – The Sherwood boys have spent the entire season carving up the rest of the Northwest Oregon Conference on the golf course, so it was no surprise that even when the Bowmen weren’t at their best during the two-day NWOC tournament they coasted to an 18-stroke win over second-place St. Helens (641) on Tuesday at The Reserve Vineyards and Golf Club.

The third consecutive NWOC title means little to Sherwood coach Jeff Stirling and the rest of the Bowmen, however, as their gaze has been transfixed on the school's first-ever 5A state title all season.

“We won every single league tournament and won the district," Stirling explained. "We’ve won most of them by 20-to-30 shots. We’ve had our eye on the state tournament all year.”

Without one of its top three golfers, Sherwood built an 18-stroke lead on the first day with a team score of 304. Despite posting 319 on the second day neither of the other two title contenders, Wilsonville and St. Helens, were unable to make up much ground.

The Bowmen, which used seven different players in the tournament, were led by junior Joe Reed, who finished with a disappointing two-day score of 150 for second in the individual race.

“He didn’t play as well as he can and he wasn’t all that pleased with his score," Stirling said.

Wilsonville's Chan Lee walks between the second and third holes on day two of the NWOC tournament. (Andrew Nemec | The Oregonian)

Wilsonville's Chan Lee was the co-medalist after day one, but a second round score of 74 allowed him to separate from the rest of the field to earn the individual title with a two-day score of 146.

Sherwood's Blake Peterson finished third individually with a score of 153.

As a team, the Bowmen received strong rounds from Keegan Brash, Gabe Reed, Drew Francois, Brice Kuehne and Rylan Thomas.

While a third straight title was not guaranteed, Sherwood came in as an overwhelming favorite due to an incredibly deep roster of talented golfers.

Earlier this season, the Bowmen set a school record with a team score of 291 – a mark Stirling had anticipated would remain intact for some time.

Two weeks later, the group shot a 282.

“This team is capable of going low – very low – and even on days when it’s not our best performance we are still pretty strong," he said. "I’m proud of this group. They are heavily committed to golf.”

St. Helens bested Wilsonville by eight strokes to finish second, which qualifies the Lions for a trip to the state tournament.

Liberty finished the regular season in sixth place, but saw a huge jump from its young roster to climb into the fourth-place spot at the tournament.

"Every kid on the team came through with their best performance of the season either (Monday) or Tuesday," coach Doug Girod said. "I wish I could explain it, bottle it somehow."

Sophomore Nick Cartier finished with a total score of 162, approximately 15 strokes fewer than his average, while fellow sophomore Nolan Richartz improved upon his expected score by 25 strokes.

"(Richartz) averaged 95 for the season. He went 82, 85. He did remarkably well," Girod said. "The other kids did too. Everyone made significant steps. It was neat. They were hungry, talking about the shots they missed rather than the ones they made."